Legislation


The collective “voice” of Senate District 39 has encompassed the ‘all-important’ Quality of Life framework that is foundational to Senator Salvador’s platform.
This framework includes the pillars of:

It is the alignment to one or more ‘all-important’ pillars that serve as a leading indicator, or “voice,” that navigates Senator Salvador’s actions, advocacy, and priorities day-to-day.

Legislatively, clear-cut pillar alignment informs Senator Salvador’s sense of urgency to introduce (as first-position primary sponsor or primary sponsor), co-sponsor/co-introduce (by way of named sponsorship to demonstrate support and mutual alignment), assent to (voting yes), compromise on (voting yes when/if the cost of inaction is too great) — or dissenting (when/if an action would expressly deny or limit a District 39 pillar above), legislation of varying complexity.

Highlights of Senator Salvador’s legislative impacts in the 2021-22 biennium, inclusive of legislation passed, bills introduced, and key votes may be found below. The full inventory of Senator Salvador’s bills and votes can be found here on her official North Carolina General Assembly page.
2021-2022 Session Legislation

Health, Safety, & Well-being

RoleBill #Short TitleOverview
First-Position Primary Sponsored Bill –
Introduced and Signed into Law
SB 586 | SL 2021-29Study Lipedema.The Lipedema Study bill was signed into law on June 11, 2021, as Ch. SL 2021-29. Lipedema is an un/under-diagnosed and, in many cases, a debilitating condition impacting the health and well-being of up to 1 in 9 women in North Carolina. The Study Lipedema bill brings broader awareness and understanding of the disorder.
Primary Sponsored BillSB 632 (= HB 507)North Carolina Momnibus Act.AN ACT TO ENACT THE NORTH CAROLINA MOMNIBUS ACT. Whereas every person should be entitled to dignity and respect during and after pregnancy and childbirth, and patients should receive the best care possible regardless of age, race, ethnicity, color, religion, ancestry, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, citizenship, nationality, immigration status, primary language, or language proficiency.
Primary Sponsored BillSB 564 (= HB 597)NC Paid Family Leave Insurance Act.AN ACT TO ENACT the North Carolina Family Leave Insurance Act and make family and medical leave insurance benefits payable to individuals meeting certain conditions and requirements.
Primary Sponsored BillCharlotte Firefighters’ Retirement System Act.AN ACT AMENDING THE LAW ESTABLISHING THE CHARLOTTE FIREFIGHTERS’ RETIREMENT SYSTEM.
Assenting Vote –
Signed into Law*
SB 105 | SL2021-180

&

HB 103 | SL 2022-74
2021 Appropriations Act.
(State Budget)
&
2022 Appropriations Act.
(Modified State Budget Appropriations)
*Of important note: Despite North Carolina voters affiliating as ~33.8% Democrat, ~30.7% Republican, (and ~35+% who do not affiliate), as the minority party, senate democrats and the public were largely excluded from 2021/2022 budget planning and appropriation decision making. The majority party’s unwillingness to collaborate was a missed opportunity for a fully bipartisan budget to do more, (or dissent real-time), in many critical areas. Still, minimum investments and appropriations needed in the areas of Health, Safety, & Well-being, outweighed the cost of inaction. The push will continue to deliver more, while working in parallel to avoid a super-majority that will invite even greater disproportion.
 
The appropriations considered for Senator Salvador’s final vote included, (but were not limited to):
 
·       Medicaid expanded minimally to cover 12 months of postpartum care.
·       Establishment of a Joint Legislative Committee on Access to Healthcare and Medicaid Expansion and a legislative study of Medicaid expansion to ensure legislative dialogue continued until the many benefits of full Medicaid expansion are realized.
·       Medicaid Coverage continued for Pregnant Women – 12-months Postpartum.
·       Funding provided for the “Firefighters Fighting Cancer Act of 2021”.
·       Establishment of The North Carolina Collaboratory to develop and deploy technologies to mitigate exposure to PFAS, including GenX, and health impacts from such exposure.
·       $15M in non-recurring funds from the State Fiscal Recovery Fund for rapid rehousing services, activities to increase local capacity for services to prevent homelessness, and home improvements and home repairs for vulnerable seniors ages 60 and older.
·       $3,585,000 in non-recurring funding from the State Fiscal Recovery Fund for nutrition services for older adults in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
·       $300K appropriated to Memory & Movement Charlotte to support individuals with Alzheimer’s Parkinson’s, and other disorders of memory and movement.
Co-Sponsored Bill –
 
Signed into Law
SB 228 (= HB 373) | SL2021-151Employer EPO PlansAllow Employers to Offer EPO Benefit Plans.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 402Close the Medicaid Coverage Gap.Close the Medicaid Coverage Gap.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 259 (= HB 251)  Additional Magistrates to Mecklenburg County.Additional Magistrates to Mecklenburg County.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 801  
(= HB 1146)
Community Safety ActCommunity Safety Act.
Assenting Vote –
 
Reformative Bill Signed into Law
SB 300 | SL 2021-138Criminal Justice Reform.One of three criminal justice bills, (along with House Bill 436: Support Law Enforcement Mental Health and House Bill 536: Law Enforcement Duty to Intervene), signed by Governor Cooper to align with recommendations of the Governor’s Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice (TREC). The bill enacts important changes to improve policing and criminal justice in North Carolina, as recommended by TREC.
Primary Sponsored BillSB 595Task Force on Adverse Childhood Experiences.AN ACT TO CREATE a task force to study the extent, nature, and impact of adverse childhood experiences with particular regard to North Carolina and make recommendations to address these impacts through State and local government with a particular focus on diversion from the criminal justice system.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 831Opioid Overdose Prevention Act.Appropriates $350,000 in recurring funds for 2022-23 from the General Fund to the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, to purchase opioid antagonists for local health departments for the purpose of reversing opioid-related drug overdoses and reducing the number of opioid-related deaths. Requires the local health departments to then distribute opioid antagonists free of charge to North Carolina residents.
Co-Sponsored Bill –
 
Signed into Law
SB 207 | SL 2021-123 (=H252)Various Raise the Age Changes/JJAC Resc.Senate Bill 207 modifies certain provisions of the Juvenile Justice Reinvestment Act, as recommended by the Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee, modifies the minimum age of a delinquent juvenile and an undisciplined juvenile, and modifies the law dealing with juvenile court mental health assessments.
For the full list of bills, please visit my official legislative page. Linked here.

Economy & Infrastructure

RoleBillShort titleOverview
Primary Sponsored Bill –  
Included in the 2021 Base 
Budget Appropriations
SB 494 (=H965)SBIR/STTR Incentive ModificationsSB 494 was ultimately, included in the 2021 Appropriations Act (State Budget), SB 105 | SL2021-180.

Designed to foster job creation and economic development throughout the state, SB 494  resulted in $5MM in recurring dollars over 2 yrs. For the NC small business programs.
Co-Sponsored Bill–  
Included in the 2022 Base 
Budget Appropriations
SB 793Study Ecom. Dlvr. Fee/Xfer Rev. for Transport.SB 793 was included in the 2022 Appropriations Act. (Modified State Budget Appropriations), HB 103 | SL 2022-74.

SB 793 permitted DOT funding modernization that cut the deficit by hundreds of millions of dollars yearly and, as a result, expanded funding sources for backlogged transportation and infrastructure projects.
Co-Sponsored Bill–
Signed into Law
SB 323 (= HB 257) | SL 2021-73Joint Municipal Power Agencies/ Investments.Senate Bill 323 benefits local governments, such as the city of Pineville, by way of authorizing money deposited in certain decommissioning funds established by North Carolina Municipal Power Agency Number 1 to be invested through the State Treasurer’s Ancillary Governmental Participant Investment Program, amongst other provisions.
First-Position Primary Sponsored Bill SB 649North Carolina Venture Fund.The North Carolina Venture fund would provide funding for initial capital for developing technology companies and ventures, and support entrepreneurs in their efforts to build valuable companies.
First-Position Primary Sponsored Bill SB 600Study Automation and the Workforce.SB 600 would establish a study committee on automation and the workforce and conduct a comprehensive review of automation’s current and future effects on the State’s workers who are/will be impacted by this dynamic.

Further, it would provide government officials, education, and business leaders with the information and insight necessary to guide the State toward mitigating the negative effects of automation on workers.
Primary Sponsor Bill SB 591Business Income Tax Deduction.An act to allow a business income tax deduction.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 363 (= HB 367)Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act.The Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act (UPHPA) helps preserve family wealth passed to the next generation in the form of real property.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 812 (= HB 1091)Homes for Heroes.Directs the Housing Finance Agency (Agency) to establish a program under the Homeownership Fund to provide assistance, in the form of reimbursement or direct payment, to first-time homebuyers that are employed full-time as public servants in the State. Defines public servant as an active duty member or veteran, law enforcement officer, teacher, firefighter, or EMS personnel employed in the State.
First-Position Primary Sponsored Bill SB 247Pineville Local Option Sales Tax.A local act to authorize the levy of a municipal one-quarter percent sales and use tax.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 688 (= HB 631)Sports Wagering.Authorize, regulate, and tax sports wagering in North Carolina. Attract major
entertainment, musical, political, sporting, and theatrical events to the State that will stimulate
economic activity and create jobs.
For the full list of bills, please visit my official legislative page. Linked here.

Education & Teachers

RoleBillShort titleOverview
Primary Sponsored BillSB 189 (= HB 226)School Calendar Flex/Mecklenburg County.Local legislation to permit additional flexibility to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools by eliminating opening and closing date parameters. 
Co-Sponsored BillSB 274 (= HB  475)Restore Master’s Pay for Teachers & ISP.Requires that for 2021-22, the State Board of Education policy TCP-A-006, as it was in effect on June 30, 2013, is to be used to determine if teachers and instructional personnel are paid on the “M” schedule and whether they receive a salary supplement for academic preparation at the six-year or doctoral degree level.
Appropriates $8 million in recurring funds for 2021-22 from the General Fund to the Department of Public Instruction to reinstate education-based salary supplements for teachers and instructional support personnel according to this act.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 121 (= HB  126)Community College System Salary Increases.Appropriates $84,003,682 in recurring funds for 2021-22 from the General Fund to the Community Colleges System Office for legislatively mandated salary increases of 7% for local community college personnel, effective July 1, 2021.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 154Fully Fund School Social Wkrs & Psychologists.Allocated to local school administrative units to increase positions for school social workers and psychologists to meet specified statewide ratios of personnel to students. Appropriations increase from $50,882,384 for 2021-22, to $508,823,843 for 2030-21.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 331 (= HB 347)Healthy Students – Nurses in Every School.Appropriates $102,000,000 in recurring funds from the General Fund to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) for 2021-22 to increase the Instructional Support Allotment. Restricts use of the funds to increase school nurse positions to provide one full-time, permanent school nurse for every school in the unit.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 359 (= HB 420)K-3 Reading and Literacy Improvement Act.Appropriates from the General Fund $271 million in recurring additional funds to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) for the 2021-22 fiscal year. Provides for allocations of the funds to local school administrative units to provide the dollar equivalent of teacher assistance positions, with one teacher assistant for every class in kindergarten, first, and second grade, and one teacher assistant for every three classes in third grade. Requires distribution based on an estimated statewide average salary and benefits per position and an average class size of 21 students per classroom.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 713Go Big for Early Childhood Education.Enacts new GS 105-153.11 providing an income tax credit for eligible early education teachers or directors with the amount of the credit a sum of two amounts that vary depending on years of service uninterrupted by more than six months and on education level obtained. Effective for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2022
Co-Sponsored BillSB 807 (= HB 1092)Student Mental Health Support Act.Enacts GS 115C-377, directing the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to establish the School Mental Health Grant Program (Program) with the stated purpose to increase student access to mental health support personnel in public school units, within available Program funds.
Assenting Vote –
Signed into Law*
SB 105 | SL2021-180
&
HB 103 | SL 2022-74
2021 Appropriations Act.
(State Budget)
&
2022 Appropriations Act.
(Modified State Budget Appropriations)
*Of important note: Despite North Carolina voters affiliating as ~33.8% Democrat, ~30.7% Republican, (and ~35+% who do not affiliate), as the minority party, senate democrats and the public were largely excluded from 2021/2022 budget planning and appropriation decision making. The majority party’s unwillingness to collaborate was a missed opportunity for a fully bipartisan budget to do more, such as utilizing a portion of reserves to fund education in accordance with the Leandro case, addressing teacher shortages with competitive salaries, or at very least, dissent real-time in many critical areas. Still, minimum investments and appropriations needed in the areas of Education & Teachers, outweighed the cost of inaction. The push will continue to deliver more, while working in parallel to avoid a super-majority that will invite even greater disproportion.
The appropriations considered for Senator Salvador’s final vote included, (but were not limited to):
• Pay raises of 5 percent over two years, and $1,000 bonuses for most teachers and state employees, plus a $2,800 bonus for teachers using federal funds.
— Additional Note: An appropriation of $100 million allocated to supplement some teachers’ pay, (not excluding where some educators would not benefit from the bullet above and/or there is a belief that local agencies are positioned to supplement, as needed.) In CMS, advocacy will continue to justify needs quantitatively and deliver more.
• Minimum wage increases for non-certified employees in public schools and community colleges.
• $2.6 billion in allocations to address long-overdue school infrastructure necessities.
• $1.5 billion in recurring funds for K-12 education.
• $5.9 billion appropriated to the State Capital and Infrastructure Fund (SCIF), which benefits infrastructure needs for state agencies, the UNC system, community colleges, and other state assets.
• 5 percent cost-of-living bonus for retirees over/for two years, as well as a 4% pension bonus.
• Investments in HBCUs (historically black colleges and universities). Locally, $7,543,584 was allotted to Johnson C. Smith University to mitigate revenue losses and continue responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the N.C. Promise Tuition Plan, which sets tuition for in-state students at $500 per semester, was expanded to include Fayetteville State University.
For the full list of bills, please visit my official legislative page. Linked here.

Energy & Climate

RoleBillShort titleOverview
Instrumental in Negotiations Leading to Viable Passage
 
Assenting Vote –
 
Signed Into Law*
HB 951 |
SL 2021-165  
Energy Solutions for North Carolina. HB 951 | SL 2021-165  is transformative bipartisan compromise legislation, the first of its kind in North Carolina, which requires the Utilities Commission (Commission) to take all reasonable steps to achieve a 70% reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide from electric public utilities from 2005 levels by the year 2030, and carbon neutrality by the year 2050, as well as other measures, in a manner that includes stakeholder input.

*While necessary to act with urgency on a complexly time-sensitive priority, Senator Salvador has been transparent in her criticism that HB 951 | SL 2021-165 lacks explicit requirements and appropriations to contain energy costs for low- and moderate-income ratepayers, 
First-Position Primary Sponsored Bill SB 563 (=HB 563)Renewable Energy Tax Credit.SB 563 (=HB 563) was introduced to reenact a tax credit incentive for investing in renewable energy property.
First-Position Primary Sponsored BillSB 509An Energy Resilient NC.Predating HB951, SB 509 was introduced to establish the Energy Resilient Communities Fund (Fund) in the Department of Environmental Quality’s State Energy Office (Office), and to provide local governments with grants to help them achieve their sustainability goals through the planning and implementation of clean energy projects that equitably advance energy efficiency, renewable energy, and related priorities. 
First-Position Primary Sponsored BillSB 556Appliance Energy Efficiency Standards.SB 556 was introduced to enact state energy efficiency standards for certain appliances.
Primary Sponsored BillSB 4432021 Safe Drinking Water Act.SB 443 would protect North Carolina citizens from harmful toxins in drinking water by requiring the Department of Public Health to establish maximum contaminant levels for known carcinogens, (and/or otherwise known as toxic).
Co-Sponsored BillSB 826Homeowner Solar Expansion Act.
Co-Sponsored BillSB 358C-PACE Program.
For the full list of bills, please visit my official legislative page. Linked here.

Liberty, Rights, Justice, & Equity

RoleBillShort titleOverview
First-Position
Primary Sponsored Bill
SB 569Consumer Privacy Act.An act to protect consumers by enacting the Consumer Privacy Act of North Carolina.
First-Position
Primary Sponsored Bill
SB 555SHRA/Ban on Applicant Salary History.Introduced to amend the State Human Resources Act to prohibit inquiries about an applicant’s salary history during the hiring process.
Primary Sponsored BillSB 426Inclusionary Zoning/Affordable Housing.An act to allow a local government to enact ordinances for inclusionary zoning.
Primary Sponsored BillSB 573Equal Pay Act.An act to prohibit discrimination in the payment of wages based on the gender of the employee.
Primary Sponsored BillSB 716 (= HB 542)Fix Our Democracy.An act establishing minimum criteria for legislative and congressional redistricting.
Primary Sponsored BillSB 165 (= HB 170)North Carolina CROWN Act.An act to enact the North Carolina Crown Act.
For the full list of bills, please visit my official legislative page. Linked here.